I worked with a team for several years; over time, learned their behaviors, attitudes, and daily patterns.
A pretty woman was hired, and immediately everything changed from management. The manager and his team lead both created a culture of dependency for her; not a culture of empowerment. They both tag teamed her with excessive meetings that she didn’t need to attend, the manager routinely held 1 on 1 meetings twice a week, for an hour exclusively with her. The rest of his team he met outside on smoke breaks only for a few minutes. She was held captive in their control. They suffocated her all day, every day, in every way. Always in her cubicle, multiple times throughout the day, but never seen at anyone else’s cubicle on the team. In time, she grew frustrated with their countless intrusions. She wanted an opportunity to grow, achieve and own her role. They both kept her in possession with their obsession: stifled her development, achievement, and success – her independence. The manager had always left work at 4:pm, his team lead had routinely left much earlier. Once she was onboard, they both remained in the office until she left many times after 5:pm. They both worked later than I had ever known before. Likewise, their online pattern also changed. Her manager would routinely logon on his days off, and vacation time to contact her but nobody else on his team. He and his team lead both always invented an excuse to contact her online. She finally got fed up and moved onto a different team. Found freedom away from oppression. Once she left, both her manager and his partner in control over her, both went back to their original daily patterns, the excessive number of meetings dropped in half, their online patterns resumed back to normal, and they both found themselves back home early with their wives. Shortly afterwards, a new unsuspecting young pretty woman came into the office and they both sunk their hooks into her and the entire process unfolded again. She didn’t care that she was being exploited and taken advantage, she was just looking for any upward mobility, and the manager and his team lead are still feasting on it all! Cummins culture is male managers exploiting and oppressing pretty women!
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I saw a kid fresh out of college come into the office. He was a Cummins employee right out of school, come to find out his dad was a Senior Engineer and got his son directly hired into Cummins. Myself, and several others for several years had all been busting a–, driving business, and making a difference (all of us still stuck as contractors/suppliers) while this c—y arrogant kid first job out of college, who his daddy got him onboard walks in and looks down on people who forgot more than what he knew. SMH!
I totally relate. I too witnessed the tilted landscape. Most all of the Cummins employees made the contractors/suppliers feel less than them. Their smug arrogance of “I’m a Cummins employee and you’re a contractor/supplier” was divisive. Ironically, many of those same Cummins employees began their careers as contractors/suppliers.
I worked at the Data Center for 6 years. There were 110 personnel: 2 were Hispanics, 2 were Asians, 3 were African Americans, 14 were Indians (contractors), and 3 white women in management. Approximately 50 were Cummins personnel and 60 were contractors/suppliers (non-employees of Cummins). 20 minorities out of 110 personnel in the office, and 3 white women in management – no minorities in senior leadership nor top level management. White men predominantly held all of the positions in power, and routinely promoted their inner circle of friends.
I agree with Sasha – class action lawsuit in regards to nepotism, racism, s-xism, and insider info. Absolute discrimination and favoritism flow in those flavors. It’s just a matter of time.
I witnessed the same dynamics at the Data Center. I watched 4 contractors of bare minimum performances advance over contractors of top performances into Cummins roles. All 4 Cummins positions were never advertised externally for competition; instead directly handed. All were in the click with the hiring manager. She was directly informing them of Cummins insider info. One of the contractors, who received her insider info, not only was directly handed a Cummins role that was not open to competition, but also was informed about referrals for contractor positions and he received $1,000 per referral. He ultimately was handed $4,000 in referral bonus, plus handed advancement into a Cummins role – that nobody else on the team had access to this information. Internal corruption!
I also know about the politics/culture at the Data Center in Columbus, Indiana.
A contractor role came open on my team, and I was positioning a current contractor for that role.
I had talked with his contract manager about the opening, and I enquired about it a few days later, but was then told another Cummins Manager wanted him for a Cummins role. He was in the click. He was friends with the hiring manager before working there. He was selected for the Cummins role before it was advertised externally. Once the role was advertised externally, the hiring manager brought in 3-4 other candidates for interview; knowing all along that he was hiring his friend. Those interviews were a waste of time, but he could show HR that others were considered. The people who showed up for those interviews all had high hopes for consideration, more qualified, but never knew the decision had already been made before the role was posted externally. The Data Center needs housecleaned from the Good ‘Ol Boy network.
@Data Center
I'm sorry to hear what happened to you, your not the only one where you report activities of managers and they not only find out who and what it's about they start to low key if not right off the bat retaliate against you. There are three reasons why this continue and happens. One, there's a lot of nepotism in hiring and favors for favors because of who you are or who you are related too. So the system is sitting there trying to protect their family if something is set up that might but them in trouble. Two, hiring from hourly to exempt and still allowing the exempt to work in the same building and/or dept.. It would be better if they did this to have those new exempt to work in another part of the company out of the area (another state) so that you won't have any conflict of interest and/or any type of favoritism. And three no accountability when they do something or mess up. Many times they are able to flush their issues onto the dept. as a whole and/or others in those meetings and their boss is covering for them and/or is getting another version of events in the meetings that don't have you in it.
What scares me about the company is that I'm surprised it hasn't had a major class action suit filed in regards to it's s-xism, racism and also rampant nepotism that is running like crazy in that company. Just because it hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't and for a person who is corporate and a CEO you would think that he would want to nip this in the bud quickly by having the ability to have employees "rat out" managers who are doing things they shouldn't or messed up things. At the end of the day you and I and everyone else knows how many times managers have done things that costs money and/or may put the company in a predicament but have been able to brush it all under the table. The guy or gal shouldn't have been manager in the first place for one and two how much money the company is losing from managers making bad calls and mistakes.
Another example of the Good ‘Ol Boy Network. Looking out for, and protecting each other. The cancer running thru Columbus, Indiana and all over Cummins.
@Sasha –
I completely agree. I reported this type of behavior on my manger, to his manager and copied our Director and others on the email chain. Notified them all of everything about his misconduct; next day, they all gave me dirty looks, and I was given a cold shoulder. No action was taken, and I felt that I had created enemies for reporting his misconduct. Anonymous reporting of all Managers’ conduct must be implemented. Just like employees are given annual performance reviews, those same employees should be allowed to give annual reviews on their manager’s conduct and performance.
I witnessed an entire team walked out in January. The first RIF of this year. 6 people all shown the door same day. None performance related; their roles were eliminated. Nobody was reassigned to any new roles. Yet, I watched 2 Cummins Managers drool and salivate daily over 2 recent female hires. Suffocating them both using “work” as an excuse. Then take themselves home to their wives. Eager to do it all again the next day. One female was routinely behind 600+ emails, deleting them all without response. Got to keep her job. Her Manager was in her face at every opportunity he created. Out of an 8 hour day, he was in her face with 6 hours of meetings she didn’t need to attend. The other female’s Manager was doing her work for her and she took full credit. Weakest link on the team by far, but he advanced her above senior talent on the team. This Cummins Management style is widespread throughout the company. Pretty women, will continue to be exploited at the hands of Cummins Managers, while others will be downsized and restructured.
Thirsty male managers who have power but shouldn't have thinking they have a shot with the pretty girl in the office or lab. This culture continues to this day and it won't change unless the CEO makes it change. I've said before that they should have a way where employees anonymously can send messages about issues they witnessed or know about in regards to the managers and if they are doing their job. Don't get me wrong he may not do anything, but the fear of knowing that employees could be using this on you as a manager who is not doing his job and one day be in a meeting where corporate not line HR comes up and ask you about certain situations can be enough to scare many of them to stop doing what they doing.
But as we know the only way many of them stop is when they are being walked out.